


Keith's Picture

by pidgeonglances



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, First posted fic, Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, M/M, Picture, first real fic, non-binary Pidge, sorry if it's bad whoops, the rest of the characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-26
Updated: 2016-11-26
Packaged: 2018-09-02 06:13:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8653861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pidgeonglances/pseuds/pidgeonglances
Summary: Pidge takes a picture of Keith and Lance. Keith treasures it.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Mmmm, Hope you like it, enjoy this short piece. I apologize in advance.

Everytime he glanced at that picture he smiled. He smiled and tears welled up in his eyes because, man, how could it have all gone to shit.

In the picture, Keith scowled. He scowled as Lance wrapped his arms around Keith's neck.  
Lance’s laugh rang through Keith's ears.

He closed his eyes.

\-     -

“Say cheese!”

“Wha-?!” _Click_.

“Nice, I got it.” Pidge smiled as they waved the freshly printed picture in the air. “Oh man, I am so glad this thing still works.”

Keith huffed. “Lance, get _off_ me.”

Lance hugged him tighter. “What’s wrong? Don't want you buddy on your back?”

“I don't usually let monkeys hang on my back, no.”

Lance faked an appalled look while Pidge snorted. Keith yanked Lance's arms off him.

“If you keep making that face, it’ll be stuck there forever, Keith. No lady is gonna want that ugly mug.”

“Shut up.”

“Hey, it's the truth, lighten up.” Lance sauntered off, mumbling something about food goo and sleeping.

“Here,” Pidge offered the picture. “For you.”

Keith hesitated. “For me? Why?”

Pidge shrugged, but their eyes bored holes into Keith's soul. He felt it. “Just a keepsake,” they said. “No big deal. I mean, I can throw it away it if you really don't want it.”

They were teasing him with the picture, it seemed. Why was Pidge like this?

“No, it's okay. I'll take it.”

Pidge grinned.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing,” Pidge giggled, “just thought it was funny that Lance said you'd never get any ladies. As if you're interested in those, am I right?” They elbowed Keith's side and winked through their glasses.

Keith felt his face getting warm. He turned away. “Shut up, Pidge.” He walked to his room.

-

Keith never was one to be in touch with his feelings, they were just a burden and he quickly dismissed anything he might feel that confused him.

And sooner or later it would come back to kick him in the ass.

It was sooner.

Every time he would even glance in Lance's general direction he felt a blush creeping up his neck. Lance would smile his usual smile and Keith would jerk his gaze away.

So he decided avoiding Lance was best. If he wasn't near him he wouldn't get flustered.

But avoiding him was much more difficult than he anticipated. The large castle somehow became a small apartment and they always bumped into each other. And every time, Lance would prod him and bait him with quips and Keith bit his tongue and turned away.

He tried his best to stay away, but, god, Lance was seeking him out now. Couldn't he just leave Keith the fuck alone?

Keith locked his door. He didn't want to see anyone, _especially_ Lance.

God, he knew this was stupid. This was the stupidest thing. Ugh. Why was he being like this?! He groaned loudly and fell backwards onto his bed.

He glanced up at the picture that hung on the wall above his bed. He turned away from it.

-

Sooner, rather than later, they were all forced to explore new planets. Try to make alliances or see if help was needed in any way. And every fucking time, Lance, fucking Lance, just had to hit on anything that moved.

It infuriated Keith. Before it had only pushed his buttons, especially when Lance bragged about how many girls he got to smile, but now? Now he was unreasonably enraged.

His face felt hot and he left the area the moment Lance started getting flirty with anyone.

He managed to sneak off and get back to the castle. He needed to train. Yeah. That would get his mind off it.

That’s what he thought.

But just his luck, it didn't work. He kept thinking off Lance smiling with those girls and he lost it. He screamed.

He screamed and he fell to his knees. He knew he was being incredibly stupid about all of this but _fuck_! This was so frustrating! Why did it hurt so much?!

He willed himself to get up. He trudged back to him room. He locked the door. He wallowed in his own self pity.

Looking back now, it was still the stupidest thing, but, hey, a broken heart’s a broken heart. And boy, did he have it good back then.

-

Lance was always seeking him out. He always knocked on the door and yelled at him to come out. Keith didn't even respond. Too much effort.

Hunk and Shiro and Allura even came to his door. And they tried so hard to get him to open up and talk and to 'please come out, we’re worried.’ He didn't come out. And he didn't talk.

Coran brought food to his door and Keith humbly accepted it. Coran left tea for him and he was grateful.

And Pidge? Pidge came too. But they didn't knock or beg Keith to come out, oh no. They went straight to lock picking and breaking and entering.

Pidge slammed the door behind them and put their hands on their hips.

“Keith Kogane, locking yourself in this room is doing you no good. Get your ass up.”

Keith, who lay in his bed, just pulled the covers over his eyes.

“I swear to the heavens, Keith, you will get nowhere if you give up. I know everyone is taking the passive route about this and tip toeing their asses around your feelings, but I am gonna beat you up.”

Keith said nothing. Pidge jumped onto the bed and landed on him.

“Ahhhh! Pidge- ow!”

“Just because you have a crush on Lance doesn't mean you can sulk around, fucking Christ, Keith! You're still apart of a _team_!”

Keith stared at Pidge wide-eyed. “I-”

“Oh, shove it. Of course I know about your crush. I'm not as dense as Lance.”

Keith furrowed his brow. “Don't-”

“Of course I'm not gonna tell him, geez Keith.”

Keith let out a sigh. “I know this is stupid Pidge-”

“Yeah, pretty stupid.”

“-but I don't know what I'm supposed to do about it. I’ll get over it.”

“Are you sure? You seem pretty head over heels for him.”

Keith took a deep breath, his eyes darted to his picture. “It'll be fine, Pidge, trust me.”

-

He wasn't fine.

The moment Keith tried to rejoin the small society of the Paladins, Lance was already trying to get a rise out of him.

Lance poked at him and bickered about everything, just _waiting_ for Keith to crack and fire back at him.

Keith would have made it too. If Lance hadn't started to brag about his skill with the ladies.

Lance slid in real close to Keith. Keith could feel himself getting flustered, but he had nowhere to turn.

“You really missed it, Keith. You should've seen the hotties out there. They were all, of course, falling for the McClain charm.”

“I bet,” Keith mumbled.

“Not like you would have won them over, I mean look at you, still with that scowl.”

“Lance, shut up.”

Lance moved closer still. “What’s wrong, Keith? You jealous?”

Keith froze. He tensed. How was he supposed to respond to that? Did Lance know? Was he making fun of Keith?

Somehow he met Lance's eyes.

“What?!” He spat. It sounded angry but.. he knew his eyes were glazed with a sort of fear.

Lance backed up. His face showed his confusion. “Of.. I… what?”

Keith’s face was red now, he could feel it. He stood up quickly and shoved Lance out of the way. Either it was harder than he meant or Lance was unbalanced or both, because Lance fell to his ass, still holding the confusion on his face.

“Keith-?”

“Leave me alone, Lance!”

Keith stormed off. He felt angry. But then.. why was he crying? This was getting ridiculous! Why was Keith being so stupid! This was just so, so-

A hand grasped Keith's wrist and he spun around quickly. Lance's eyes, filled with concern, met his own.

“Keith-”

Keith's face quickly heated up. He tried to pull his hand away, but Lance's grip was firm.

“I-”

“Keith?”

_I am not going to do this now. I am not going to do this now. I am **not** going to do this now._

“Lance,” his voice cracked, “I-”

He turned to try to leave again but Lance grabbed his shoulders and kissed him.

He froze.

_Oh my god. Oh my fucking god. Oh **fuck**. Did that just happen?!?!_

They stared at each other, eyes wide with shock.

“I- sorry. That was-”

“No, wait. I… I like you too, Lance.”

“ _You guys are disgustingly frustrating to watch, holy fuck_!"

They both turned, red in the face, to see a smiling Pidge standing down the hall.

“Like, thank god, you finally just went for it!”

They blushed, like idiots.

-

Keith couldn't be happier. He lay curled up in Lance's side and he smiled. He smiled the stupidest idiot smile of happiness he could muster and curled in closer to him.

-

Everything was the same, really. Just with the added touch of two of the Paladins being disgusting in love with each other.

They’d hold hands and lean against each other, and even sneak a kiss during work hours if no one was looking.

Everyone was happy for them. They smiled and laughed and everyone was happy. A big happy, mismatch family.

They still bickered of course, but it was all fun.

It was all so perfect.

-

Missions changed a bit though. Keith always seemed too overprotective of Lance now. He tried to take all the danger from him and the groove of the team was beginning to be disrupted.

Lance approached him about it more often than the others. He always said the same thing. He tried to convince Keith that he was capable of taking care of himself and that he wasn't as stupid as Keith thought.

Keith would furrow his brow and argue that he knew Lance could take care of himself. That he didn't think Lance was stupid. That he knew Lance was strong.

He argued that he still was worried.

Then, during the last argument, Lance finally pulled the picture of them off the wall and put it in Keith’s pocket.

“There,” he smiled, “no need to worry now, yeah?”

Keith smiled back up at him and nodded.

Lance had this.

-

A new mission came up.

Keith couldn't remember much about it.

He knows they went in in pairs.

Hunk with Pidge, Shiro with Allura, and Lance with Keith.

Perfect teams.

They had gone in. Yes. The rest blurred together.

They were fighting. Shots were ringing out.

Now they were running. Fast. Where were they running to? How did they know where to go?

It's too much of a blur to tell.

There was shouting.

Lance and Keith. They were crowded. Cornered. Trapped.

Lance's voice shook as he fired. He shoved Keith behind him and fired. He said “I love you,” and he fired.

He was out. The weapon stopped firing. The Galra still fell.

Hunk and Pidge appeared behind them.

They defeated the bunch in front of them.

Thank god. Thank god. Thank-

Lance slumped down. Keith quickly caught him.

“Lance, what the- Lance!”

Keith was on his knees now, cradling Lance.

Lance coughed. Blood.

His stomach and his chest held wounds.

Hunk and Pidge froze where they stood.

“Lance, no. Lance, I swear. We’ll get you to the pod. Just. Just fucking wait. Come on. Hunk- _help_.”

“No,” his voice was soft and shaky. “Keith.. I-”

More blood was coughed up.

Tears formed in Keith's eyes. “Please,” he whispered.

“Keith, I’m sorry.”

“No, don't be sorry, you're fine, you're fine.”

He wasn't fine.

He was slipping.

“Keith, I love you.”

“Stop talking like that.”

Lance smiled and tears flowed down his face.

“Please say it back, please. I need to- I need to hear it.”

Keith was close to sobbing.

“I-”

 _“Please_.”

“ _Lance, I love you more than the world_.”

Lance chuckled. Then he cried. They both did. Keith squeezed his hand and Lance squeezed back. Then, Lance's hand fell limp.

“No. No, Lance, please. Lance! Goddamnit, Lance please!”

He was sobbing uncontrollably now.

“ _Please, Lance. I love you_.”

The rest was a blur. He couldn't remember how they got out or if there was anyone else to fight. He didn't care. He was gone. Lance was gone.

He reached in his pocket and pulled the picture out.

_There, no need to worry now, yeah?_

\-    -

He opened his eyes.

He held that picture in his hand and curled up in Lance's bed.

It still held his scent, though it was fading. He could still hear Lance laughing if he concentrated enough.

The tears streamed out and they fell quickly and painfully.

He hugged his picture tightly.

**Author's Note:**

> Please give feedback. Sorry if there are typos. Thank you for reading. :3  
> EDIT: I DIDNT ORIGINALLY TAG THIS CORRECTLY AND I FEEL SO BAD RIP


End file.
